So Many Dishes

Food always seems to feature in any holiday or celebration at our house. Valentine’s Day is no different and, as usual, we’ve stretched it out beyond one day.

We started out with Friday lunch at Cooper’s Hawk. Well, technically, we started with an early morning walk through Wellington’s equestrian preserve to Dunkin Donuts for coffee and a donut, so we worked up a good appetite to enjoy lunch out, too. We both chose entrees from the “lunch-sized entrees” section of the menu. Ken’s choice was gnocchi with roasted butternut squash. The sauce included wild mushrooms, sweet onion cream,feta, and spinach. Ken gave me a taste, and I can understand why his bowl was clean. It was delicious. I thoroughly enjoyed my chicken giardiniera, mixed pickled vegetables over a chicken cutlet. It was served with particularly tasty mashed potatoes, and my plate was pretty clean by the end of the meal, too.

We didn’t need a big dinner, although we commented about how nice it is to get a reasonable portion of food at a restaurant, rather than a huge amount that just encourages you to overeat. Our Friday dinner was what we refer to as “pickies:” essentially mezzos or small plates. We shared some tabbouleh that we found on the salad bar at Publix, good olives, hummus, cheese, a fresh loaf of sourdough, and a glass of wine. No pictures, just a relaxing evening.

Our Valentine’s Day began early, as we went to watch grandson Luke play in a baseball tournament. It’s great to see how his skills have improved over the last couple years, and how much he loves the game. It was a fun way to start the day.

We had a very special dinner to celebrate the holiday. I finally cooked a recipe from Ten to Try, the orange chicken piccata with shallots. This is one that I found in the Washington Post, a recipe developed by dietician and nutritionist Ellie Krieger.

The dish isn’t difficult. It does require having everything prepared and handy, because once the chicken goes into the pan, there’s no time for last minute prep. But it only took 10 to 15 minutes of prep time, 20 to 25 minutes to cook. That included putting together an avocado and tomato salad while the pan was heating.

We were really happy with the results. Ken said that he hopes I’ll make this again. I have a more traditional chicken piccata that I’ve made for years, but I like this version better. I had less chicken than what the recipe called for: just under one pound, instead of the 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 pounds, but I didn’t adjust the amount of sauce. The sauce is the best part! We served it with sourdough bread, which was perfect. The old recipe makes a lot of sauce, so I serve that over spaghetti, but this sauce is thicker and I loved sopping up the remains with my bread.

Orange Chicken Piccata with Shallots

• 2 large or 4 small shallots, peeled
• 1/3 cup flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 2 (10-12 ounce) boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, or to taste
• 1/2 cup dry white wine
• 1 teaspoon finely grated orange zest
• 1/4 cup fresh orange juice
• 1 1/2 tablespoons capers, plus 1 teaspoon caper brine
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter

Slice the shallots into eighths if they are large, and into quarters if they are small.

Place the flour in a shallow dish and stir in the salt and pepper.

Slice each chicken breast “across the equator” to make cutlets. If necessary, place a piece of wax paper over the chicken and use a mallet to pound to 1/4 inch thickness. Dredge chicken pieces in the flour mixture.

In a large skillet over medium heat, heat the oil until shimmering. Working in two batches, add half of the chicken pieces to the skillet and cook until golden brown and cooked, 3 to 4 minutes per side. Transfer the cooked cutlets to a plate and repeat with remaining chicken.

Reduce the heat to medium low and add the shallots to the skillet. Cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 4 to 5 minutes. Add the crushed red pepper flakes and cook for another 1 minute.

Add the wine, increase the heat to medium, and bring the mixture to a simmer. Cook, scraping up any browned bits, until the wine reduces, about 2 minutes. Stir in the orange zest and juice, the capers and caper brine to combine, and bring the mixture to a simmer, 1 minute. Return the chicken to the skillet. Add the butter and, stirring, until the butter melts and the chicken is warmed through, 2 to 3 minutes. Baste and flip the chicken pieces to coat them with the sauce. Adjust seasoning if necessary, and serve. Makes 4 servings.

Because it was a special occasion, we each enjoyed a glass of white Bordeaux with dinner. This isn’t the wine I cooked with. I agree that you should never cook with a wine you wouldn’t drink, but I’d much rather drink this wine. A decent jug Sauvignon Blanc is what went into the sauce.

I hope your weekend has been a great one. Happy eating!